Intaglio method and apparatus for multi-decorating sheet material



Feb. 21, 1967 E. A. MAGID 3,304,861 INTAGLIO METHOD AND ARA FOR MULTI-DECORATING SH MAT Filed July 50, 4

INVENTOR EUGENE A. MAG/D ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,304,861 INTAGLIO METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MULTI-DECORATING SHEET MATERIAL Eugene A. Magid, 1610 Cleverly Laue, Rydal, Pa. 19046 Filed July 30, 1964, Ser. No. 386,305 8 Claims. (Cl. 101-152) This invention relates generally to decoration of sheet or web material in the general nature of printing, and embraces a unique method of sheet or web decoration, as well as novel apparatus for use in practicing the instant method. 1

While the method and apparatus of this invention have been primarily developed and employed for use in decorating plastic sheet, say film in web form, and will be illustrated and described hereinafter with particular reference thereto, it is understood that the advantageous features of the instant invention are equally well adaptable for use in decorating a variety of sheet materials, all of which applications are intended to be comprehended herein.

Heretofore, in order to print in a plurality of colors, it was generally necessary either to have a separate printing roller for each color, and then precisely to register one color with the other, running the web through the press for each color separately; or running it successively through a series of appropriately spaced printing rollers where each printing roller would print its own color presumably in registry with the previous color. In this case, quick drying ink must be used or sufficient space must be provided between the rollers to allow for drying in order to avoid bleeding of the colors. The precise registration of color or other decoration was always a problem.

In the present method, a single engraved roller is used for printing a plurality of different colored inks simultaneously. A single roller is arranged to pick up ink from a plurality of ink troughs successively positioned around the periphery of the printing roller. This does provide for wet ink being put upon Wet ink, but there is a doctor blade arranged either as part of each ink trough, or directly adjacent to each ink trough, so that as-the printing roller is rotating, the ink is picked up by the valleys in the engraved ink roller, and may even blend with or wash one another by reason of the doctor blade scraping or wiping off the ink from the peaks or high parts of the engraving on the roller; the trailing part of the engraving tends to leave a deposit of ink or color on the trailing side of the pattern only so that there is achieved the effect of a shaded line along the one side of .all of the pattern motifs or elements. No provision need be made for registration of the colors in the successive ink troughs because a plurality of colors or effects of decoration may be obtained by combining all colors or decorations on a single pattern roller before deposit on a film or web.

It is an important object of the present invention to provide a highly improved method and apparatus for the decoration of a Web of sheet material, such as plastic, fabric, paper, foil and other sheet material, wherein a plurality of decorating materials are simultaneously applied in the manner of printing to produce uniquely attractive and highly esthetic decoration.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a unique method and apparatus for decorating sheet material, which is extremely simple and produces the apparent results of relatively complex procedures and apparatus in a relatively inexpensive and highly reliable manner to effect substantial savings in cost. 1

It is a further object of the present invention to provide the preceding paragraphs, which is capable of utilizing decorating materials and obtaining artistic results heretofore unobtainable.

Other objects of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the following specifications and referring to the accompanying drawings, which form a material part of this disclosure.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combinations of elements, and arrangements of parts, which will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter described, and of which the scope will be indicated by the appended claims.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a partial elevational view, partly in section, illustrating the method and apparatus of sheet decoration of the present invention.

FIGURE 1a is an enlarged, fragmentary sectional view of the printing roll of FIGURE 1 at one location thereof.

FIGURE 1b is a fragmentary sectional View, somewhat enlarged, showing another portion of the printing roll of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional View showing the feeding of decorating material to the printing roll of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a partial plan view showing a segment of a sheet decorated in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, and specifically to FIGURE 1 thereof, the apparatus practicing the method of the present invention is there illustrated as including a rotary back-up roll or impression roller 10, which may be of any suitable construction, say having a smooth cylindrical surface and rotatable either freely or driven in the direction of arrow 11. An engraved, etched or otherwise recessed pattern roller or printing roll 12 is mounted for rotation about an axis generally parallel to that of the impression roll 10, and substantially tangential to the latter roll. The pattern printing roll 12 is advantageously driven by any suitable drive means to rotate in the direction of arrow 13. The patterned peripheral surface of printing roll 12 is formed with a plurality of recesses 14 in accordance with the design to be imprinted. Further, the pattern recesses 14 are each of a varying depth in the manner of an intaglio printing roll.

At spaced locations circumferentially about the printing roll 12 are located a plurality of feeding mechanisms, such as ink fountains 16 and 17, being illustrated herein as two in number. The upper or first fountain 16, in the order of printing-roll rotation, includes a doctor blade 18 for wiping engagement with the circumferential, patterned surface of the printing roll, and is adapted to contain a decorating material 19 for feeding to the patterned recesses 14. The second or after fountain 17 may also include a doctor blade 20 in wiping engagement with the printing surface of roll 12, and adapted to contain a different decorating material 21 for feeding to the recesses 14. The fountains 16 and 17 thus feed decorating materials 19 and 21 sequentially to the recesses 14.

After such successive or sequential feeding of different decorating materials to the recesses 14, the full recesses move into generally tangential relation With the back-up roll 10, and a web or sheet 22 may pass in the direction of arrow 23 in tangential relation between the nip or bite of rollers 10 and 12 to receive the decorating material from recesses 14 and be printed thereby.

In the fragmentary sectional view of FIGURE 1a is shown the printing roll 12 with its recesses 14 containing only decorating material 19, at a location between feeding mechanisms 16 and 17. At a location subsequent to or Patented Feb. 21, 1967 beyond the several feeding mechanisms (see FIGURE 1b), the printing roll 12 has its recesses 14 occupied by both the decorating material 19 and the decorating material 21. In practice, the later-fed decorating material 21 remains on the surface of the earlier-fed decorating material 19, and when applied to the sheet material 22 the later-fed decorating material is substantially overlaid or covered by the earlier-fed decorating material. However, along the trailing edge of a recess 14, especially where the trailing edge of the recess is of gradually decreasing depth, the later-applied decorating material 21 will approach or engage the bottom of the recess and thus be more obvious in the final imprinting. This may serve to produce a shading effect, especially when the later-fed decorating material is darker than the earlierfed decorating material. Also, in a printing-roll recess 14 of varying depth, the later-applied decorating material 21 will more closely approach or engage the recess bottom wall at locations of minimum depth for increased exposure upon application to the sheet 22.

This operation is shown in greater detail in FIGURE 2, wherein the later-fed decorating material 21 substantially covers the surface of the earlier-fed decorating material 19 in the recesses 14.

The resultant printing is illustrated in FIGURE 3, wherein a leaf design is generally designated 25 and includes portions of varying color or tones as produced by decorating materials 19 and 21, and mixtures thereof. Of course, the different decorating materials 19 and 21 may be of Widely varying types, such as printing inks of different colors, densities or bases, and may even be of different physical states, say one decorating material including solid, particulate matter in a liquid carrying vehicle, which may or may not be colored, as desired.

Of course, the decorating materials 19 and 21 may have desired cooperative reactions with the sheet 22 being decorated, say the latter being plastic and the decorating materials including solvent constituents, or other relationship, if desired.

From the foregoing, it is seen that the instant invention provides a method of decorating sheet material and apparatus therefore which fully accomplish their intended objects and are well adapted to meet practical conditions of manufacture, maintenance and operation, and otherwise fully accomplish their intended objects.

Although the present invention has been described in some detail by way of illustration and example for purposes of clarity of understanding, it is understood that certain changes and modifications may be made within the spirit of the invention and scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In the method of decorating sheet material, the steps which comprise providing a patterned rotary intaglio roll and a rotary back-up roll in generally tangential relation, separately and successively applying directly to the entire circumferential surface of said intaglio roll different decorating materials and immeriately wiping each said successively applied decorating material with its own doctor blade bearing directly against said intaglio roll before the next successive decorating material is so applied, the last applied decorating material remaining near the trailing edge of each pattern recess for eventual application to the trailing edge of its respective sheetdecoration, and passing a sheet to be decorated between said two rolls whereby said sheet is decorated with said decorating materials to present the appearance of shading in accordance with the patterned configuration of said intaglio roll.

2. The method of sheet decorating according to claim 1, wherein said sheet is of plastic material.

3. The method of sheet decorating according to claim 1, wherein said sheet is a fabric.

4. The method of sheet decorating according to claim 1, further characterized in successively applying liquid decorating materials of different colors.

5. The method of sheet decorating according to claim 1, further characterized in successively applying liquid decorating materials of different densities.

6. The method of sheet decorating according to claim 1, further characterized in successively applying liquid decorating materials of different bases.

'7. The method of sheet decorating according to claim 1, further characterized in successively applying liquid decorating materials, at least one of which includes particulate decorating materials.

8. Sheet-decorating apparatus comprising a rotary back-up roll, a rotary intaglio printing roll in generally tangential relation with said back-up roll for passage therebetween of the sheet being decorated, said printing roll having specifically configured surface recesses for carrying decorating material for eventual deposit on said sheet, and a'plurality of decorating material feeding station-s each coextensive with the entire length of the printing roll, located at circumferentially spaced apart locations about said printing roll for successively and sequentially feeding different decorating materials to all patterned areas of the entire surface of said printing roll including all areas previously decorated, and a doctor blade for each said feeding station in wiping engagement with the entire surface of said printing roll whereby said different decorating materials are simultaneously applied by said printing roll to said sheet.

References (Iited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,890,922 12/1932 Waller 101152 1,892,392 12/1932 Grupe 101-211 2,132,086 10/1938 Schefiler 101152 X 2,275,062 3/1942 Lathey 101170 3,03 6,927 5/1962 Jerothe 118-212 X 3,213,787 10/1965 Miller 101-211 FOREIGN PATENTS 610,943 10/1948 Great Britain.

ROBERT E. PULFREY, Primary Examiner.

J. R. FISHER, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN THE METHOD OF DECORATING SHEET MATERIAL, THE STEPS WHICH COMPRISE PROVIDING A PATTERNED ROTARY INTAGLIO ROLL AND A ROTARY BACK-UP ROLL IN GENERALLY TANGENTIAL RELATION, SEPARATELY AND SUCCESSIVELY APPLYING DIRECTLY TO THE ENTIRE CIRCUMFERENTIAL SURFACE OF SAID INTAGLIO ROLL DIFFERENT DECORATING MATERIALS AND IMMERIATELY WIPING EACH SAID SUCCESSIVELY APPLIED DECORATING MATERIAL WITH ITS OWN DOCTOR BLADE BEARING DIRECTLY AGAINST SAID INTAGLIO ROLL BEFORE THE BEXT SUCCESSIVE DECORATING MATERIAL IS SO APPLIED, THE LAST APPLIED DECORATING MATERIAL REMAINING NEAR THE TRAILING EDGE OF EACH PATTERN RECESS FOR EVENTUAL APPLICATION TO THE TRAILING EDGE OF ITS RESPECTIVE SHEETDECORATION, AND PASSING A SHEET TO BE DECORATED BETWEEN SAID TWO ROLLS WHEREBY SAID SHEET ID DECORATED WITH SAID DECORATING MATERIALS TO PRESENT THE APPEARANCE OF SHADING IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PATTERNED CONFIGURATION OF SAID INTAGLIO ROLL. 